A potentially ugly impasse involving the Bermuda Football Association (BFA) and national youth team coaches was narrowly avoided yesterday after a local insurance company agreed to fund hotel accommodation for the Island’s Under-13, Under-14 and Under-15 national teams.

Team coaches had threatened to withdraw their services and boycott this weekend’s inaugural Clyde Best Invitational Youth Tournament if demands ranging from hotel accommodation to provisions for transportation and food for the Island’s young representatives were not met by local football’s governing body.

Yet before the group could act on their threats, local insurance firm Colonial forked out $6,700 that will now be used to cover costs for housing the three national youth teams in hotels — a core issue at the centre of the row.

“The BFA normally deals with the accommodation decisions and funding for its national teams of which these three are. But every time there’s a football tournament in Bermuda the national team doesn’t always stay in a hotel. This competition is based in Bermuda, and so we have been able to give the support which is necessary in order for the team to participate,” Mussenden said, alluding to the Association’s sanctioning of the event.

“Previously, even with senior team commitments when there has been a match in Bermuda, we have not always put them in hotels but have made available other facilities for them to gather at prior to a match,” he added.

Mussenden said the Association’s decision not to pay for hotel accommodation was based solely upon insufficient funds.

“The reason for that was because we’ve had a number of financial commitments this year where we have applied our funds, for instance our senior team going to Trinidad (last month) where we had to pay all of the expenses and all of the on-island expenses in Trinidad,” he explained.

“What people must be aware of is that the Government funding does not become available until April and even that money has been set aside for specific programmes. So people should not be confused about that and because of strict regulations.

“We can’t even make financial commitments now and then use those funds later because its a different financial year and the money is not available to us yet. We can’t even think about that.”

Ironically, all of the overseas teams competing in the inaugural tournament — which kicks off tomorrow at the National Sports Centre — all covered their own accommodation expenses.

The Royal Gazette learned yesterday that a group of national team coaches demanded a meeting with Mussenden yesterday in an attempt to resolve the issue. The BFA chief, however, did not turn up.

“I didn’t attend the meeting as I did not consider their demand for a meeting to be a proper request,” Mussenden explained. “However, I did speak to one of the coaches by mid-day and invited them to meet with me and some of the executive members if they wished to do so. And at this particular point in time there hasn’t been any meeting.”

Having been denied the opportunity to meet with the BFA boss, the small group of disgruntled coaches vowed to publicly air their grievances.

The growing row, however, eventually dissipated when demands for funding were met by Colonial Insurance at the eleventh-hour.

Mussenden attributed the dispute to a lack of communication between all of the parties involved.

“I’m hoping now that everyone is clear about where we stand and that what is more important is the tournament being a success, the Bermuda teams competing at a high level and everyone enjoying themselves,” he added.

“And so I extend my best wishes to the coaches and also to the teams, as well as tournament organisers for making this tournament happen.”

Meanwhile, BFA technical committee member and tournament organiser Clyde Best said he was pleased to see matters finally resolved.

“We know that there has been one or two things that have been mishandled here, but the most important thing right now is to get these children playing soccer,” he said.

“Hotels and all of this other stuff should’ve never been an issue. The most important thing here is to try to get these kids try outs and college scholarships and playing against quality opposition. Something like this (boycott) could’ve tarnished Bermuda football.

“The game is about the kids and it has to be about them because if they have to suffer then what are we saying to them?

“The game is bigger than everyone, and I’ve known this for many, many years having been involved in it. We (organisers Bermuda Football Foundation) are only in this thing to try and improve football in Bermuda. And I am glad everything has now been resolved.”